In an effort to improve the lives of farmers and increasing their income, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday approved around `13,966 crore outlay for seven big-ticket programmes related to the farming sector, including a `2,817-crore digital agriculture mission and a `3,979-crore scheme for crop science. These programme will focus on harnessing public-funded digital infrastructure to research focussed on emerging challenges in the farm sector.
The emphasis of these programmes would be on research & education, climate resilience, natural resource management and digitisation in the agriculture sector along with emphasis on growth of horticulture and livestock sectors.
Addressing a press conference after the Union Cabinet meeting, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved seven schemes to improve farmers’ lives and increase their incomes at a total outlay of `13,966 crore.
The Cabinet has approved crop science for food and nutritional security programmes with a total outlay `3,979 crore.
In this programme, six pillars have been included in the programme with a focus on preparing the farmers for climate resilient crop sciences and food security by 2047. These six pillars are — Research and Education; Plant Genetic Resource Management; Genetic improvement for food and fodder crop; pulse and oilseed crop improvement; Improvement of commercial crops; and research on insects, microbes, pollinators.
A part of the fund will be utilised for improving productivity of pulses and oilseeds, apart from plant-genetics management. India seeks to end its dependence on costly imports to meet local pulses demand by 2027, a key agriculture-sector priority.
In the financial year ended March, imports went up 84% year-on-year to 4.65 million tonne, the most in six years. In value terms, the country’s spending on imports rose 93% to $3.75 billion. India largely imports from Canada, Australia, Myanmar, Mozambique, Tanzania, Sudan and Malawi. Extreme weather linked to the climate crisis has dented farm output in Asia’s third largest economy, hurting crops such as wheat and stocking prices.
The Cabinet also approved an outlay of Rs 2,291 crore for strengthening agricultural education, management and social sciences. This programme will be under Indian Council of Agricultural Research. The aim is to modernise agri-research and education in line with New Education Policy 2020. The use of latest technology like Digital DPI, Al, big data, remote, etc will be promoted and the programme includes natural farming and climate resilience.
“Under AgriStack, farmers will be given a digital identity (Farmer ID) similar to Aadhaar, which will be a trusted ‘Kisan ki Pehchaan’,” the statement said. This ‘Farmer ID’ will be linked dynamically to the State’s land records, livestock ownership, crops sown, demographic details, family details, schemes and benefits availed etc. Crops sown by farmers will be recorded through mobile-based ground surveys i.E. Digital Crop Survey to be conducted in each season. For the creation of Farmer IDs, pilots have been conducted in one district each across 6 States: Uttar Pradesh (Farrukhabad), Gujarat (Gandhinagar), Maharashtra (Beed), Haryana (Yamuna Nagar), Punjab (Fatehgarh Sahib), and Tamil Nadu (Virudhnagar). “It is targeted to create digital identities for 11 crore farmers: six crore farmers in FY 2024-25, three crore farmers in FY 2025-26, and two crore farmers in FY 2026-27”, the statement said.
The third project worth Rs 1,702-crore has also been cleared for sustainable livestock health and their production. The scheme aims to increase farmers’ income from livestock and dairy. Under this scheme, the focus will be on animal health management and veterinary education; dairy production and technology development; animal genetic resource management, production and improvement; and animal nutrition and small ruminant production and development.
The Cabinet also approved the Digital Agriculture Mission with a total investment of Rs 2,817 crore. There are two foundation pillars in the project -- Agri Stack and Krishi Decision Support System. A major component of DAM mission is the creation of an Agri Stack, which includes a Farmers Registry, Village Land Maps Registry, and Crop Sown Registry. The Agri Stack will serve as a comprehensive database through detailed records of farmers, land usage, and crop patterns. Another crucial aspect of the mission is the Krishi Decision Support System. This system will leverage geospatial data, drought and flood monitoring, weather and satellite data, and groundwater availability information to assist farmers in making informed decisions. Additionally, the system will include modeling tools for crop yield and insurance, helping farmers to better plan their activities and mitigate risks.
A project worth Rs 1,702 crore has also been cleared for sustainable livestock health and their production. The scheme aims to increase farmers’ income from livestock and dairy. Under this scheme, the focus will be on animal health management and veterinary education; dairy production and technology development; animal genetic resource management, production and improvement; and animal nutrition and small ruminant production and development.
Another major scheme cleared by the Cabinet relates to sustainable development for horticulture. “With a total outlay of Rs 860 crore the measure is aimed at increasing farmers’ income from horticulture plants.” The programme comprises of tropical, sub-tropical and temperate horticulture crops; root, tuber, bulbous and arid crops; vegetable, floriculture, and mushroom crops; and plantation, spices, medicinal, and aromatic plants
Other decisions taken by the Cabinet pertains to strengthening Krish Vigyan Kendra (Rs 1,202 crore), and Natural Resource Management (Rs 1,115 crore). There are more than 700 KVKs across the country.
